Lover of Shadows
by GreatSynthesis
Summary: Scáthach has loved him since they had first met, and it had only grown stronger. After killing gods, wraiths, and mortals, the immortal Queen of the Land of Shadows, the Witch of Dún-Scaíth, joined her lover to supervise over Sétanta, who just couldn't stay out of trouble. By the way, what are these singularities that pop up? Ulster Cycle, FGO.
1. Water and Runes

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of this. The vast majority of this is from mythological stories created a while ago or is owned by someone else.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**Ireland, 1500 BCE**

_'Stupid ass water...'_

It was all the waters fault.

Had it not been raining that day; he could have avoided all of this that was going to happen. He could be on to the next town, doing what he did best nowadays, stealing. Albeit, most of the houses he robbed were practically asking for it. Some left a window open, or the back door unlocked, and it wasn't all that unusual for Naruto to be able to walk right through the front door and take what he wanted.

But that day, it had been raining, and rain was good, at least for Naruto. It meant early bedtimes and people staying inside their houses all day. Normally, thieves would be seething at this. An empty house was easier to rob, right? In most cases, yes, but whenever it rained nobody left their rooms. It was so easy to sneak inside and simply take whatever he wanted, and when they realized it was gone, they would blame each other.

Genius.

Today was his final day for this town. He had robbed 19 of the 20 houses, and all had been made from wood. Wood was better for rainy days, as the wood absorbed the water instead of letting it slide along the surface. The wood would then become softer and have better traction, making it easy for him to run along the roofs of the houses at night.

He had just robbed the 19th house last night and watching them argue in the morning was priceless entertainment. Everyone would blame someone, no one would take credit, and they would all leave unsatisfied. The people were simply too proud to believe that they could have been stolen from, it was honestly pitiful.

Now, it was time for house 20.

The crescent moon shined brightly in the streets while the cover of darkness settled in, like a morning fog that impeded vision. The woods ominously shifted in warning, frightening the people that were still outside, who booked it towards their respective homes. Naruto didn't believe in fairy tales. There were no lycanthropes in the woods. Nor were there vampires or evil walking trees, but he wouldn't take a gift situation for granted.

The town was empty, now was the perfect time to strike.

And then it started raining.

_'Perfect.'_

This was the best weather he could've asked for. The rain plopped onto the street and the houses, going plop, plop, plop, plop. Thunder grumbled and lightning flashed, or was it the other way around? Naruto didn't know, nor did he really care. His foot contacted the roof of a house, the wood under his feet groaning in the short effort it took to hold him up before he took off again, moving towards his final victim of the town, the 20th house.

He stopped at the 19th, the house he had just robbed. The ran continued to plop onto the groudn and the roof of the houses, which helped tremendously in stealth, as his footsteps could be easily mistaken for raindrops. He looked towards the 20th house.

Naruto bit his lip in frustration. He could only vaguely see the outline of the house through the pouring rain. He looked down towards his hand briefly, before biting the inside of his cheek and looking back towards the 20th house.

_'Should I...? I can't really tell what it's made out of...'_

His mind made up, he looked back towards his right hand and opened the palm up. On his hand there was a marking that looked like the letter C except with only straight lines. He traced it with his hand, before chanting softly, his voice lost in the downpour of rain. Suddenly, his hand lit up as if on fire, and glowed an eerie orange color. He directed his hand towards the last house, hoping the light would guide his eyes.

It didn't.

The downpour of rain was too strong, and Naruto didn't truly know what he was doing when he traced his palm. All that he really knew was that he had done it before, and that it worked every time he did it.

**SIGH**

_'I guess I'll have to make the jump blind. Too bad I couldn't tell the material it was made out of. Well, considering 19 of the 20 houses were made of wood, it wouldn't be that bad of a guess to think that this one is made of wood as well.'_

His leg muscles tensed as he prepared to jump, coiling in an effort to produce a springing power strong enough to propel Naruto onto the next house. The tension released, and Naruto flung into the air, legs aimed straight for the roof of the other house, and he landed with a thud on the soft wood.

Only it wasn't wood.

It was stone.

He slipped as he landed on the roof of the house, the pouring rain mixing with the dirt on the house to create a thin, slippery oil film that he had landed on. His hands reached out, searching for any object to grasp onto that would stop his fall. The water guided him down the house and pulled him off of the roof. His hand grasped something, a ledge at the end of the roof of the house. He hung there, slightly swaying in the downpour.

'_Crap! This is all the water's fault! If it hadn't rained, I could've seen the stone, and it wouldn't have been slippery!'_

As of now, the rain had lost standing with Naruto. Slipping and almost falling to a broken bone or serious concussion can do that to someone. Naruto pulled himself up with moderate effort, his elbows up on the edge of the roof. His right leg lifted—

"Whatcha doing, kid?"

**[!]**

Naruto froze. He wasn't alone. It was an adult. They lived at this house. He was screwed. His hand was still glowing. His left hand slid closer to his right, desperately trying to cancel the source of energy that was being transmitted to maintain his hand's eerie glow.

"There's no need to hide it. I can recognize rune magic from a mile away," The man said.

_'So that's what this is, rune magic...'_

Having given up at this point, Naruto sat himself up on the ledge, feet dangling over the edge, the pouring rain slightly obscuring his image of the man that had caught him. From what Naruto could see, the man was dressed quite richly in purple robes and brightly colored clothes, a sure sign of either royalty or importance. Considering Naruto had never heard of royalty in the area, the man was probably someone of importance, a member of the ruling class. The rain continued to come down hard.

"What can I do for you, kid?" the man asked.

Despite his thick beard, the man wasn't all too intimidating, especially since Naruto was sitting on a roof, and had the high ground. Taking the safe approach, Naruto responded.

"I was just looking around town, and slipped on top of your roof," Naruto said

"And why, pray tell, were you on my roof of all things?" The man rhetorically asked. He was smart enough to know what Naruto was trying to do.

"Don't answer that question, I know what you were trying to do," The man said.

Naruto just sat on the ledge, watching the man as he stroked his beard. Naruto said nothing and waited for the man to continue anxiously.

"You don't really seem like a bad kid, and I'd hate to simply send you off to the orphanage..." The man said.

"Don't bother, I'd just run away like I did the last one,"

The man pondered on that. "Well, if you won't go to the orphanage, I can't just leave you alone on my conscious. I suppose I'll have to adopt you,"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Adopt me? Do you even know how to raise a kid?"

The man feigned looking hurt. "I'll have you know I have two beautiful daughters and a lovely wife. I think I know how to raise a kid,"

**STARE**

Naruto bought none of it. "...Well, I'm not just going to go with you. You could be lying for all I know,"

"You're right, I could be lying. But wouldn't you want to know how to use all the runes, and not just the one on your hand?" That was a dirty move, and both knew it. Adoption had nothing to do with runes but knowing how to use them would be a great boon for Naruto.

"I'll tell you what. You look like a smart kid, so how about we play a little game of riddles, and the winner gets what they want. Deal?" The man proposed.

Naruto didn't buy into it. "You have to be at least 30 years older than me; you would most definitely win. Instead, let me ask you 3 riddles, and if you get all three right, I'll go with you," Naruto said.

"Ok. I'm good with that."

Naruto had briefly heard this first riddle from a stranger, and thought it was a good one. "Ok, first one. What is greater than a god, more evil than the a devil, the poor have it, the rich need it, and if you eat it, you'll die?"

The man laughed. "A good riddle, I suppose," He thought on it a little more, before answering the riddle. "The first two give it away. The answer is nothing. Nothing is greater than a god. Next one, please."

Naruto growled in frustration. That was one of the best ones he had, the man must have heard it before. "Fine, number two. Which creature walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?"

Once again, the man laughed. "Everyone knows the Sphinx's riddle. The answer would be human. You have any better ones?"

Now Naruto was being mocked. He knew from the beginning that he didn't have a very good chance of winning at all, the man simply had more life experience than him, but he wouldn't give up. "What belongs to you yet everyone else uses it?"

The man paused in thought, and a victorious smile appeared on his face. "My name's Árd-Greimne by the way," He said, and then snapped his fingers.

Naruto lost consciousness.

* * *

**Unknown**

Naruto's eyes snapped open.

Thunder roared is his ears, and lightning flashed from the heavens above. Rain fell harder than ever before, each drop slamming against the ground. His eyes wandered from his spot.

He was currently on a beach, a very nice beach, in fact, if it hadn't been for the awful weather. Behind him seemed to be a cliff, and on that cliff lay a fortress. The dream corrected him.

_Not a fortress, a portal. To the Land of Shadows, wherein there lies a fortress._

To everyone but its rulers, the Land of Shadows was not accessible by normal means, considering it lied in a dimension separate from this one. The fortress was merely a portal for outsiders to enter the Land of Shadows if they dared.

The ground shook beneath him, and Naruto's head swung back to the _rising _sea.

From beneath the waves rose two sea monsters, monsters of unrivaled power who terrorized the sea for ages, and they were about to face off in a bloody showdown.

The monster on the left was a big monster, around the size of fifty blue whales. Its arms were that of a human, but its fingers were webbed for swimming. Its lower half was that of a monster. It had the tail of a leviathan, long and serpent-like, with two dorsal fins on the bottom, quarantining a third of its area. And its head screamed killer with its large, bloodshot eyes and teeth the size of Roman artillery. Its very presence caused the wind to howl like wolves and storm clouds to thunder in fear. The monster was known as the Coinchenn.

And then the opponent appeared.

Having a very different take on 'sea monster,' this monster was much more octopus-like. One large green eye stood at the center of its round shell of a head. Its tentacles were numerous in number, each one the size of a building and having ends as sharp as any spear in existence. Each 'limb' was covered in spikes, to make it very deadly used as a slashing weapon or a piercing weapon. It roared, showing off its razor-sharp teeth at the bottom of its head. The roar shook the heavens themselves, and lightning refused to flash in fear of encountering this creature. The monster was known as the Curruid.

**(Yes, they are actually two monsters. Just in case you were wondering.)**

Naruto stared in wonder as the two stared each other down as if they were each sea gods going to war over territory. The sea fell, as if it was trying to escape the conflict, as the monsters sized each other up, looking for openings to exploit, and strengths to avoid.

It was deathly quiet.

And then, one moved.

The Coinchenn leaped forward, its muscular arm drew back, hands clenched tightly, muscles bulging. Its upper body left the water as it came crashing down like lightning towards its opponent.

The Curruid wasn't slacking behind though. Its razor-sharp tentacles had been lifted in defense, and others arced around the Coichenn, trying to take away its exit routes, but the Coichenn had no interest in retreating.

Naruto watched in awe as the two fought each other, the Coichenn's fist crashing into the wall of tentacles the Curruid created, and breaking through, though not without injury. Its tentacles had created enough slices on the Coichenn's fist, and the flanking tentacles had pierced somewhat into its torso.

But the Coichenn's fist struck true, smashing against the Curruid's skull, and sending it flying backward. The Coichenn surged forward as the Curruid recovered, and they engaged once more.

Naruto's eyes moved back and forth as the two fought each other. Each attack met with defense; injuries sustained by both sides as they fought.

The Coichenn's arms went back, both bleeding from an immeasurable number of cuts, and were sent forward towards the Curruid's head. Tentacle's met arms and hands, and the Coichenn's right arm was successfully cut off, but not the left. The left broke through the tentacles and crushed the Curruid's skull. The Curruid instantaneously died as bone fragments penetrated its brain. The Coichenn wasn't fairing much better.

Gallons of blood gushed from its stump of a right arm and the cuts littering its body. Its movements became sluggish as it bled out, having no way to stop the bleeding. Within a minute, it too had died.

Naruto watched as time flew by, years became seconds, centuries minutes. Each of the monster's respective skulls had washed up on the beach, the skin and fleshed decaying until all that remained was the bones.

His perspective changed when he saw a figure working with the bones of each monster, shaping the bones into a shaft and a blade. As the unknown artisan spoke, Naruto only caught two words.

Gáe Bolg. The spear of mortal death.

Naruto watched on as the artisan took the spear, and melted into the shadows, as if becoming a part of them.

His body lurched, and he was back on the beach, flying up the rocky cliff towards the looming fortress.

His body moved over the bucking bridge and through the front gate, up and down stairs until it reached the center wall of the back of the fortress.

His body melted into the shadow of the wall, and he was gone.

His consciousness drifted in the pitch black of the night. Souls roamed the plains, and the land seemed to be made from shadows. Naruto approached the upcoming fortress—no, palace—and the souls paid him no mind.

His body slowed and he entered the front gate, the looming yet beautiful dark purple walls of the palace were enchanting, and he drifted up the stairs. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught millisecond view of an unknown person, who looked strikingly like the creator of the spear, Gáe Bolg, enter a room.

Naruto followed, his body moving according to his will, yet at the same time against it. He opened the door, and the figure turned around.

She was strikingly beautiful, her long, silky hair, a mixture of a wine-red color and purple, although the red was clearly dominant, went down past her slim waist and wide hips and ended at her plump bottom, which seemed to disobey gravity. Her skin was a pale white, yet not too pale, and seemed to be completely untainted. Her breasts were of the larger size and seemed to be barely contained by the tight-fitting bodysuit that she wore, which accentuated her curves. Her gorgeous red eyes stared into his, as a soft smile graced her features.

"Welcome home, my husband," She walked towards him. She stood in front of him, arms lightly crossed under her chest. A playful glower overtook her features.

"You've been neglected your duty as my husband. I'll have you know that I can be very needy, and your absence his left me wholly...unsatisfied." Her arms encircled his neck, and her body pressed against his. Her lips turned into a sultry smirk. "Why don't you... remind me, of why I'm your woman."

Naruto spoke, yet he didn't. The voice that came out was his voice, yet it originated from the dream.

"And you can remind me of why I'm your man."

Her face approached his, and their lips met in a soft, passionate, and loving kiss.

Naruto woke up.

* * *

**Ireland**

"How'd your meeting go, dear?" A woman spoke. This was Lethra, the wife of Árd-Greimne, and mother of Scáthach and Aífe. She was a beautiful woman in her early forties, with waist length black hair, a sizable bust, and curves that belonged on a younger woman.

Árd-Greimne sighed. "It went pretty well, actually. Scáthach and Aífe were pretty excited to see their new brother."

Scáthach and Aífe were the daughters of Árd-Greimne and Lethra, and both were aspiring warriors.

Scáthach had waist length crimson hair that had tints of purple and was considered to be a very beautiful girl when she would grow up. She was a proud girl that understood her position as a member of the ruling class, and as such wasn't a very exaggerative person.

Aífe had black hair that was just as long as Scáthach's, and she too would become very beautiful when she grew up. Aífe was much more laid back than Scáthch was and acted like a young girl more as well. Aífe was a regular young girl, excitable and giggly, but she too understood her position as a member of the ruling class.

The three kids were currently outside getting to know each other, with Naruto accepting the fact that he had lost pretty quickly but was still wary of Árd-Greimne for the stunt he pulled by snapping his fingers.

"Aífe was excited to get a new brother. If you looked at the two now, it would be hard to believe that Aífe had just met him today," Árd-Greimne said.

Lethra smiled. "I'm glad Aífe is getting along with him, but not that surprised. How about Scáthach? Is she getting along with him?" Lethra asked.

Árd-Greimne nodded. "Yeah, Scáthach is getting along with him. He even got Scáthach to act her age!"

**[!]**

Lethra stood up, stunned. "How!?"

Árd-Greimne shook his head, laughing. "All he did was ask her to train him, and she immediately started getting along with him."

Lethra looked astonished. "He got Scáthach to train him by just asking?! That girl can see potential in people, so for her to accept him as a student, and so readily... she must see great promise for him in the future."

"Indeed. I also do as well."

"That's right. You're teaching him rune magic, aren't you? How'd that go?" Lethra asked.

"Better than I could have hoped for. Naruto has a talent for rune magic I don't even see in Scáthach and Aífe, and they picked up on in very quickly," Árd-Greimne said.

"How? Scáthach and Aífe picked up on it in record times. How could he learn faster?" Lethra questioned, surprised.

"I never said he learned it faster than them, did I?" Árd-Greimne said.

"No... you didn't. What are trying to get at, Árd-Greimne?"

**[QUIET]**

He looked towards Lethra, a serious look on his face. Upon seeing his look, Lethra mimicked it. "Naruto has a knack for creativity using rune magic. I just taught him Berkano, the nature rune."

"The one that causes growth?"

"That same one. He cast the spell the traditional way, but instead of causing growth in the soil, he cast the rune onto his arm, and his arm became encased in roots. I told him to test it out, and a single punch was strong enough to destroy one of our dummies. A steel dummy," Árd-Greimne said.

"That shouldn't be possible... you shouldn't be able to change a runes usage..." Lethra shockingly spoke.

"I thought that same thing, but perhaps the rules don't apply to Naruto."

"Mother, father."

Scáthach entered the room, a determined look on her face as she approached her parents. Lethra greeted her with a warm, loving smile.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"I've decided to take Naruto as my student, and I promise—" Scáthach said.

Árd-Greimne interrupted her. "I know, Scáthach. I hope you don't neglect your own studies, though, you'll need them in the future."

Scáthach nodded. "I know, father. I expect Naruto to learn very quickly, and I would like to stay ahead of him as his teacher."

Lethra giggled. "Scáthach, you and Naruto are the same age, you're peers, and it's important that you remember that."

Scáthach lightly blushed in embarrassment. "Right, Mother."

Árd-Greimne chimed in. "Besides, I think Naruto has already surpassed you in rune magic. You better get working on your spearmanship."

"Right!"

Scáthach ran out and almost bumped into her sister, Aífe, who was entering the room.

Lethra acknowledged her daughter. "Do you need something, Aífe?"

Aífe simply looked down, her face unhappy and drooping. This broke both her mother and father's hearts, and Lethra couldn't help but gather up her little girl in her arms and cuddle with her. Aífe buried her face in her mother's chest as Lethra hummed to her.

"Is there something wrong, my little warrior?" Lethra asked her daughter. Aífe mumbled incoherently into her mother's bosom, and Lethra lightly giggled at that. "Aífe, you can't talk if your head is in my chest. Rais your chin and speak to me," Lethra said.

Aífe followed her mother's directions. "Mother..."

"Yes, sweetie?"

"I don't want Naruto to go..."

Lethra blinked at that. Naruto was going to leave? She and Árd-Greimne had adopted the boy, he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon. A quick glance towards her husband and Lethra could tell that he was just as confused as she was.

"What do you mean by that, Aífe?" Lethra asked.

"Scáthach said that Naruto had to go on a trip for a while and that he wouldn't return... I don't want him to go..."

Now Lethra understood. Aífe must have been eavesdropping on Naruto and Scáthach's conversation before joining in. Truth was, the only trip Naruto was going on was back to his orphanage, which was a few towns over, to get what he had left behind. Naruto would then be staying a while at their house, where Aífe would see him every day. Feeling slightly mischievous, Lethra teased her daughter.

"That's so sad Aífe... I know. If you cling to him for the rest of the day, he might not leave."

Aífe perked up at that. "Really mother?" She asked.

"Really," Lethra said.

Aífe hopped out of her mother's lap and was already partly out the door. "I'll make sure he doesn't leave, mother!"

Lethra giggled and Árd-Greimne sighed. "You didn't have to tease her, you know? Aífe doesn't know the difference between teasing and being serious. You should apologize to her, Lethra."

"Come now, how much harm can it cause? Aífe's not hurting anyone, and she'll stop once she realizes that Naruto isn't leaving," Lethra said.

"I sure hope so, for his sake..." Árd-Greimne said.

The two of them enjoyed the silence as the heard their now three kids playing outside, enjoying themselves. Lethra smiled at her husband. "What other runes have you taught him so far, dear?"

Árd-Greimne stroked his beard. "Well, you already know that I've taught him Berkano., and he already knew how to use Kenaz, he just didn't know what it was or what it meant."

"That's the torch one, right?" Lethra asked.

Árd-Greimne nodded. "Yep, Kenaz is the torch one. I've also taught him Sowilo, the fire rune, and Ansuz."

"Really? Ansuz? That's a very complicated rune," Lethra said.

"But he picked up on it very quickly. He knows about all the ways to use it. Naruto knows it's used as an attack rune, and how as an attack rune it's very unoriginal yet powerful. Naruto picked up on using it as a supporting rune even more, as he quickly came to understand how useful it could be in both combat and normal life. Ansuz can be used to make anything godly. Do you have a broken chair? Ansuz, and it's fixed. The fires that Sowilo produces aren't hot enough or concentrated enough. Ansuz, and now it's Godfire and it even hotter than it needs to be. He even came up with uses that I had never heard of," Árd-Greimne said.

"Really?" Lethra sounded doubtful. "I know you might not be the best practitioner of rune magic, but I was under the assumption that you knew most, if not all of the theoretical parts."

"Nope. This kid stumped me. After discussion, he came to realize that since Ansuz can make anything godly. It can increase your speed, strength, hearing, durability, stamina, and more to a godly level. Not only that, but Ansuz can make you sound louder, hear softer things, and look farther than any normal human. It can increase your muscle and bone density. With practice and careful application, Ansuz can give you wings, or the ability to breathe underwater. In truth, the rune is only limited to the user's imagination and mana capacity, and this boy has more mana than an average grown man. Mixed with his imagination, he could end up becoming unstoppable," Árd-Greimne said.

Lethra shook her head in disbelief. "We had two children, both of which are on the road to becoming masters in martial arts and prominent rune users, and we adopt a genius boy, who can use runes to levels that grown men had deemed impossible. I don't even know what to say..."

"Then don't. We can just watch them grow up into master warriors, parallel only to each other. I just hope they don't pull too far away from Aífe, she isn't into her training as much as Naruto and Scáthach are, and with Scáthach teaching Naruto, they'll be on the same level soon, even if Scáthach wants to forever recognize him as her student, she'll come to learn that for some students, you get closer to them when you finally realize that you're truly equals."

**End Chapter 1**

* * *

**Chapter was Rewritten**

* * *

**Hello again.**

**Sorry about the other story that I deleted, certain...circumstances came up and I thought that it would be the best thing to do.**

**Anyways, this is basically the same story idea just put a lot better in my opinion.**

**I wasn't sure whether this should be a mythological fanfic or a fate series fanfic. I think I'm gonna go way fate series since some future characters come from fate.**

**This chapter was, unfortunately, a lot of plot setup and not a lot of action, but next chapter I'll probably have a few years' time-skip to where everyone's kind of at the same level. So I apologize if the personalities are a little weird, but do well to remember that they are only 10 years old, and much more childish than I would usually want to write them. Hopefully I'll have their personalities down after the time-skip next chapter.**

**Be kind with your reviews please, and don't feel obligated to leave a review. I do not appreciate flaming at all. Also, updates will most likely happen every two-three weeks.**

**Bye.**


	2. Dull Lumosity

**Chapter 2**

**8 Year Time-skip**

"Morrígan..."

"..."

"Morrígan."

"..."

"..."

"..."

**SIGH**

"Stop ignoring me Morrígan."

"..."

His eye's narrowed and fists slightly clenched in mild irritation. Perhaps he could cross just one line..."I know you can hear me. I just want to talk to you."

"..."

Now his irritation was clearly present on his face. Ignoring people usually was a great tactic at getting people to leave, but he couldn't. Time to cross a line. "Look, I'm sorry about what Dagda did but—" He said agitatedly.

**[CHILLS]**

"I'm not mad at you, Lugh. I'm just in a bad mood right now, so don't talk to me," Morrígan warned, stone cold.

These two are Lugh and Morrígan, god of the sun and goddess of war, fate, destiny, and death.

Lugh was a handsome man, with chin-length brown hair and dark green eyes. He stood at a solid 6'3 and was currently decked out in battle armor that covered his torso and the upper half of his limbs. He lightly glowed as if he was made from light, which as he was god of the sun, made sense.

Morrígan had a very cold exterior that contrasted with her body. She had dark black hair that reached her lower back and was a little wavy. Her eyes were also black, like the void of space. Her body seemed very relaxed and kind, like a mother ready to accept their child into their arms. Her scowl destroyed that image.

Lugh ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Look Morrígan, despite Dagda still being... well, Dagda, he does have a point," Lugh stated.

Morrígan's annoyance grew. "I _know _he has a point, Lugh. But why does he need me? I know for a fact that he could get someone a lot more willing to do this for him," Morrígan all but growled at Lugh.

Lugh stared at her; his eyes boring into hers relentlessly.

"Morrígan, he chose you because this relates to your domain of death." Morrígan continued to stare at him. "After all this time, the Land of Shadows has started to fall apart. It should be able to govern itself, but Dagda—no, but we need someone to take control over it and restore it to its regular form," Lugh explained.

Morrígan was wholly unconvinced.

"I still don't see why this has to involve me personally. As you just said, the Land of Shadows does not _need _anyone to look over it. It can function perfectly by itself. You can tell Dagda to fuck off and get someone more willing to do this meaningless action," She argued.

Both parties had increasing annoyance. Lugh on Morrígan's insistence for Dagda to get someone else, and Morrígan on Lugh's insistence that Dagda needed her to do it.

"Morrígan, nobody even knows how the Land of Shadows works except for you. You have to find someone and get them to at least stabilize the place," Lugh said.

"Get someone to bring them to me," Morrígan responded.

"But we don't know what qualities they need to have. As only you know how the place works, only you can choose a suitable person to rule over it," Lugh stated.

"I stand by my word. Find someone else," Morrígan didn't budge,

Lugh grumbled and then sighed. He had been told to only use this as a last resort, but considering that Morrígan wasn't even thinking about helping, Lugh guessed that he had to use it.

"Look Morrígan. If you help, I have been given permission, from Dagda himself, to do _it,_" Lugh offered.

**[!]**

Morrígan looked genuinely surprised. "Truly? He would finally relent and agree that I was in the right and he was in the wrong? I find that hard to believe."

"Dagda knew you would say that, so as a token of his good intentions, he has given me a piece of his cauldron to give to you, should you accept."

A piece of Dagda's cauldron was way too good to give up. She could use that piece as blackmailing material _forever_. Never again would Dagda get the best of her or humiliate her.

"Very well. I suppose I accept this offer."

Laugh spoke excitedly. "Alright then! Let's get right to work-"

"But first, I want all the details. The Land of Shadows would not randomly destabilize on its own, and I know that no one from our respective pantheon is dumb enough to mess with it. So, tell me, Lugh. Who caused the Land of Shadows to destabilize?" Morrígan said.

Lugh's face hardened.

"We don't know who for a fact, but we have a good idea. We believe that Helios of the Greek Pantheon had been messing with the Land of Shadows."

"The titan of the sun? What would he want with the Land of Shadows? A person with a domain like his certainly wouldn't care about an equivalent to their Fields of Asphodel. What gives?" Morrígan asked

"Normally, I would agree with you. Helios should want nothing to do with the Land of Shadows. But lately, rumors have been spreading that Helios has had increasing degraded mental health, and nobody knows why. People claim that he was shouting about a something that didn't belong in the human world, and forcefully moving into the Land of Shadows," Lugh explained.

Morrígan pondered on that. "And these are all rumors?"

"They're not baseless, if that's what you're asking. People claim that they saw agents of Helios looking into Dún Scaíth, as if trying to find a way in. But yes, they are just rumors. For now," Lugh said.

Morrígan's finger touched her cheek in thought. Her head shook. "I suppose we can't really do anything as of now. I believe that I will now go look for the person that we will be... hiring, per say."

"Yes, that would be a good idea. I must ask though, where will you look? You wouldn't want to be looking around aimlessly."

Morrígan laughed at that. Walking around aimlessly? Hardly. She already had an idea of who would take her up on the offer.

"Lugh, you remember Árd-Greimne, right?" Morrígan asked.

"Ah yes. The magics teacher, correct?" Lugh stated.

"Yes, that's correct. It turns out that he has a daughter, and through gossip—"

"You're stalking them," Lugh interjected.

"I'm going to ignore that... anyways, I learned that she is a warrior," Morrígan informed him.

Lugh looked surprised. "Really?"

"Uh-huh. Apparently, she is known for killing criminals, specifically rapists and murderers. However, as Árd-Greimne's daughter, she has had many potential suitors." Morrígan said.

"Had? Did something happen to them?" Lugh asked.

"You could say that. Any suitor must fight her one-on-one. She kills the really arrogant and pompous ones, which are most, and lets the others leave."

Lugh laughed. "Such is the problems of the ruling class. I take it you're going to offer it to her?"

Morrígan smirked. "Not just her. Árd-Greimne adopted a son a while ago, and it seems that Árd-Greimne's daughter taught him and likes him. She's not exactly all lovey dovey, but it's clear she cares for him," Morrígan said.

"So, you're going to offer it to both of them?"

"Perhaps," Morrígan slightly frowned. "It's a little weird though. As gossipy as some god's are, they do notice things. It seems that Helios has taken an interest in the boy too."

"Could that boy and Helios' ambitions have anything to do with each other?" Lugh pondered.

…

…

…

Nah.

* * *

**Unknown Place**

"My Lord Helios, it is almost ready." The man spoke in a slight revering tone. Helios was everything to him, and if asked to give his life he would do so gladly.

"_Finally_, it was taking _forever_," Helios said exasperatedly.

The man talking to the Titan was around 6 feet tall and had extremely short brown hair as well as a prominent beard. Most people that saw him thought he was homeless, but that was just an act he used in order to gain information.

Solinus pondered on that. "I suppose it did take a while, didn't it? We did have to find a small opening into Dún Scaíth, and tracking the soul that came from beyond this realm was a very arduous task, but eventually, we found it."

Helios leaned forward. "And where would it be?"

"It's currently in Ireland, ironically enough. Once we have secured the soul it isn't that far to the Land of Shadows."

That was perfect. They could kill the inhabited body and stuff the soul inside of the Land of Shadows within the day. Helios would have been pissed had the soul been in the land we call Russia today, or god forbid the two 'undiscovered' continents. Helios didn't have that kind of time.

"Good. Does Philotus know anything about it?" Helios' voice boomed. Philotus was a mercenary, he lived and breathed money.

Solinus gave his response. "Negative. All he knows is that capturing the boy equals money. He's just as stupid as always." Philotus wasn't necessarily stupid, just extremely oblivious and trusting. You could stab the guy in the back and convince him that it was an accident.

"I knew I could trust you, Solinus."

"It is my duty to serve you, my lord."

Solinus was Helios' right-hand man. Basically, he did everything that the god was too lazy to do himself. Whether that be spying on someone or doing the dishes, it didn't really make that much of a difference.

"Now leave me. I have much to ponder upon."

Solinus bowed deeply. "As you command, so it shall be."

Solinus left the room, leaving Helios to sit on his throne alone. Helios himself was just a silhouette, his features being concealed by shadows. For the Titan of the Sun, Helios wasn't exactly the biggest fan of standing in the light.

His hands clenched on the throne's armrests, cracking them. He stood, his hulking figure almost touching the ceiling. He laughed, the type of crazy laugh that an evil villain would do right before they were about to be killed. His eyes glowed with insanity through the darkness, their yellow color mixed in with the bloodshot gave him the classical insane look.

"Soon... yes, very soon."

* * *

**Some Town in Ireland**

"You are Naruto, yes?"

**[STARE]**

Naruto deadpanned. "Yeah. That's me."

"Marvelous! I have found my goal, and now I shall complete it!"

Naruto stared at him for a bit, and then rubbed his eyes. He looked back up.

_'...Not imagining things...illusion?'_

He discreetly pinched himself, hoping the pain would break him out of this illusion. It was useless, though. Had it been an illusion, he would have detected the use of magic, which he didn't. So when he looked back up, nothing had changed.

_'Is...is he actually real?'_

In one last ditch effort, hoping to whatever deity listening that this guy didn't exist, Naruto looked towards Scáthach, who wasn't doing much better than him. The woman that barely showed any emotion besides a small smile or frown had slightly dropped her jaw. It was brief, but Naruto noticed it nonetheless.

If Scáthach saw him, and he saw the guy, then he probably did exist. Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever's left, however improbable, must be the answer.

This guy was beyond weird.

"What are you two doing?"

Naruto looked at him warily, eyes narrowed in caution. "Nothing really, we... were in awe of you. Yeah, in awe."

Scáthach sighed. Naruto was great at many things. Unfortunately, lying wasn't one of them. In fact, he kind of sucked at was great at many things. Unfortunately, lying wasn't one of them. In fact, he kind of sucked at it.

"I'm not surprised! Many are in awe of the great Philotus! The greatest mercenary the world has ever known!" He said, very proud of himself.

Scáthach stared at him, _'First; he believed that awful lie? A child could tell that Naruto was lying. And greatest is pushing it. Wait a second, mercenary?' _Her eyes narrowed.

"If you're a mercenary, then what are you doing here?" Scáthach questioned. "Mercenaries don't just appear in random towns without a reason, especially out in the open, when people are in a marketplace."

Naruto and Scáthach had gone out to buy training equipment for themselves and Aífe. Not 3 minutes after entering the market, this weirdo approached them and started spouting nonsense.

The man, Philotus, nodded, eyes closed in victory, looking very proud of himself. "You would be correct, miss. I have revealed myself to complete my objective, which is so close to completion," Philotus said. They both looked at him, and at this point, were wondering if they should even ask. They did though.

"Your objective?" the two asked him.

Philotus stood strong and tall, hand clasped firmly against his chest as if he was in a salute. "Yes, my objective. I have been given the task of capturing and delivering someone by the name of Naruto to my master," Philotus proclaimed.

Scáthach's hair covered her eyes. An ominous wind blew through her hair, causing it to wave in the breeze. The sun dimmed, and a cloud blocked its heat from reaching the surface. A slight chill overcame the townspeople's bodies, as if they had worms wriggling inside of them.

Scáthach took a step forward.

"Naruto, huh." She voiced icily.

Philotus nodded excitedly. "Yes, the master paid a particularly high sum for his deliverance, and I couldn't pass up on it."

Scáthach started walking towards him, and the chill increased in intensity. Hair crawled and stomachs turned. Some younger townsfolk saw life flash before their eyes. Scáthach stopped in front of Philotus. "By the way, who hired you?" Scáthach asked.

"Oh, some guy named Solinus hired me for his master. Said something about soul or whatnot. Now run along missy, I have to capture your friend—Ugh," Philotus

**[STAB]**

A spear was embedded in his heart.

"Wha—how..." Philotus questioned, eyes wide.

Scáthach's calm gaze bore into him, portraying her boredom as to how a potential fight had ended up. "How pitiful. Neither of us would have needed to take you seriously," She spoke emotionlessly. Her spear dug deeper into his chest, and her foot kicked him off violently, yet gracefully. He fell to the ground, wheezing.

Besides the chill, the townsfolk paid it no mind. They had learned years ago about what Scáthach would do to people and had grown accustomed to it. They even sometimes found joy in it, when she killed an especially awful person.

**[SPLURT]**

Blood flowed from the wound, his skin becoming paler by the second, the life slowly leaving his face. "I don't... understand..." Philotus mumbled.

Scáthach stood over him. "I am responsible for Naruto, so you need to know that you overstepped your boundaries by a wide margin." Her cruel gaze bore into him. "I have punished you according to your crime," Scáthach stated.

Philotus was dead.

Naruto looked over at her curiously. "You're responsible for me?"

Her lips slightly twitched, but Scáthch's face remained passive. "That's right. I am your Shishou," Naruto sighed at that, "and even though your skill has grown tremendously, I still have to take responsibility for someone like you." Her head turned towards him, and she looked him directly in the eye, trying to convey something to him, "Besides, I helped the poor man out. He would have made a fool of himself fighting against you" She carelessly wiped the blood off her spear.

Naruto looked slightly embarrassed, 'I'm not quite sure why you have to take responsibility for me," He said.

Scáthach raised a delicate eyebrow towards him but otherwise remained impassive. "You are my responsibility because you are my student. If you want a lover, it is my duty to deliver, even if it's just a game between us," Scáthach stated, her face emotionless, but her cheeks a slight pink.

This time Naruto could not control his blush. "I'm pretty sure that's not how it works—" Naruto sputtered.

She appeared in front of him. "...Is there a problem with that?" Scáthach questioned. Her face remained impassive, so he couldn't tell if it was teasing or not.

Scáthach had taken to teasing him mercilessly over the years, and sometimes, Naruto even wondered if she meant what she said. It certainly sounded like she meant it. He shook his head and forced his blush down.

Truthfully, she was both teasing him and being honest. Scáthach knew she had feelings for him, but she wasn't about to act like a little girl over them. However, if Naruto kept failing to pick up on her hints, she might have to be more forward. A direct confrontation.

Scáthach would not allow anyone to get in her way, even Aífe. While Scáthach would rather not hurt Aífe, she would not let her sister get in the way.

In the end, Naruto was _Scáthach's._

Though she might share a little, their hearts would be entwined.

Unless a second Scáthach popped up.

Scáthach would rather not compete with a copy of herself.

* * *

**Olympus**

Olympus was a very beautiful place. The many gardens swarming with colors, the clear blue fountains of water, and the pure white marble the made up the center building. Each palace had its own design fitting its owners' tastes, yet still working with the white marble of the main hall. It had been a pretty calm day.

"APOLLO!" Zeus' face was enraged.

Emphasis on _had_.

Apollo played it chill. "No need to sound so mad pops! What is it-"

"WHERE IS HELIOS?" The command echoes across the halls of Olympus.

Looks like being chill didn't work very well. "Now let's be calm-"

"CALM? YOU EXPECT ME TO BE CALM?!" Zeus was not calm, if you couldn't tell.

"Zeus, stop your yelling or you're sleeping on the couch," Hera threatened.

That shut him up. Hera had complete control of 95% of her husband. Unfortunately for her, the 5% was his dick.

Hera spoke in a much quieter tone, yet no less threatening. "So, Apollo, to restate my husband's question, where is the titan of the sun?" Apollo was currently in a submarine 5,000 feet beneath sea level that only had screen doors. Not a very good situation.

Apollo was nervous. And sweating. Where was he again?

"Answer the question."

Oh right, Olympus. He was with Helios, and for whatever reason, Helios asked him to distract some Celtic deities. Apollo was more than happy to start flirting with them. Now then, what was happening?

"Apollo... NOW." Oh right. Interrogation. There was no getting out of this one. He had unknowingly dug his own grave. It was honestly kind of sad.

"Well... he...uh...kind of asked me for help getting into Celtic territory... and I may have helped him a tiny bit..." Apollo spoke nervously.

"By a tiny bit, you mean distracting just about every Celtic god and goddess while Helios planted a transport seal somewhere so he could immediately get in undetected? Is that what you mean?"

"Yeah..."

"Did you even remember anything about Helios? How some gods have declared him insane, and unfit to be ruling over anything? How he not only didn't deny those allegations, but embraced them, and said that he would murder thousands in order to complete his cause? A cause that makes absolutely no sense at all!?" Hera wasn't happy.

He may have forgotten about that.

Thankfully, it was just Zeus and Hera lecturing him. Had it been the entire council, Apollo was 100% sure there would be an arrow in his genitals. Artemis wasn't exactly very forgiving of the male gender, and this little (read HUGE) mistake would have given her enough reason to keep him castrated for years. Apollo did not want to test the limits of his regeneration, and the first time she did it was so painful he _may _have screamed like a little girl. That was embarrassing, especially when it took him weeks to wake up, and he forgot what had happened. It was like everyone else was in on a joke that you didn't understand. Still, teasing Arty was fun.

"Do you know what you've done, _Apollo_?"

He gulped nervously. Zeus acting like a ruler was _scary_. Apollo liked it better when they could all laugh at him for his infidelity and make fun of him for his power hunger. When Zeus truly got mad, he was undoubtedly a king. "Well yeah, I let Helios place a seal-"

"That's not what I meant, and you know it's not."

Apollo knew _exactly _what Zeus meant, and the three of them knew it. Helios going into foreign territory and placing a transport seal was extremely stupid. Should the seal be found at all, the Celts would take it as a declaration of war and would be free to attack them with no repercussions.

The other pantheons would see the Celts in the right, and any alliance the Olympians might have had would abandon them. The Shinto hated them as it was, and the Sumerians would be more than happy to go to war over something that didn't involve them. Apollo could name a few other pantheons too. Simply put, they would be screwed. Thankfully, they were keeping this between the three of them, unless the seal was discovered.

"You fucked up, Apollo."

He already knew that.

* * *

**Home**

_Love._

_Love was an interesting thing._

_It could cause immense joy and happiness, yet at the same time such anger and hatred._

_To fall in love was a wondrous thing, yet at the same time, could be extremely horrific, and lead to the deaths of many and the birth of a cold-blooded killer._

_Such was the joys and horrors of love._

_To fall in love with someone who does not love you..._

_What a horrific fate._

_You could almost hear the cackling of the fates in the distance, wondering when and how they could fuck your life up and screw you over._

_Love was fickle._

_It split apart friends; causing them to commit acts they will forever regret, it split apart family; people who should always stay by each other's side, swearing oaths of vengeance so they could get their revenge, and regret it for the rest of their life._

_Love was wonderful._

_It pulled friends in and caused friendships to blossom and bloom into whatever was desired. It kept families together; they all loved each other, and despite words said or actions done, they would always love each other, no matter what._

_She wasn't sure what to think about love._

_It caused this warm, pleasant feeling in her chest, and his presence lightened up her day. She couldn't stand being without him, even for a moment._

_She felt love, so she felt jealousy._

_Jealousy was not envy._

_Envy was a sin..._

_Jealousy was a reminder you were in love._

Aífe was certainly _not _jealous.

"You two are late..."

Aífe was also not happy with the two of them. Naruto's cheeks had a slight pink hue, and Aífe was ever so sure that Scáthach had caused it. A slight growl edged out of her throat, one that Scáthach clearly caught, if the returned smirk meant anything.

'_You're asking for war, Scáthach. War. I will never concede defeat.'_

Naruto's voice cut the tension. "Am I interrupting something?"

Scáthach tilted her head towards him, a small smile graced her lips when their eyes briefly met.

Aífe beamed a dazzling smile towards him and squeezed the life out of him.

"I'm glad your back safe, Naruto~! I missed you more than you could imagine!"

Naruto's head was pushed into her bosom as she nuzzled his head. Aífe giggled as she hugged him, enjoying his warmth with her arms wrapped around him.

"Ahem. I would appreciate if you don't cling to things that you don't own," Scáthach said. This lit Aífe's fuse, who was clearly getting angrier by the second.

Aífe leveled a glare towards Scáthach.

"Naruto is my student," Scáthach said that as if it explained everything. At this point, Naruto had given up correcting her with 'former.' Truthfully, she did still teach him a little, but nowhere near the point of being a teacher, like she used to do. Scáthach seemed to enjoy recognizing him as her student, so Naruto wasn't too annoyed with her.

"_Excuse me?_ Are you laying a claim?" Aífe said.

Scáthach responded appropriately. "Yes, Aífe. I am."

Naruto jumped in. "Wait a second, don't bargain with me—"

""You don't have a choice.""

He wasn't all that surprised.

* * *

"Why am I doing this again?"

The three of them were outside on the training grounds. Árd-Greimne and Lethra had left the house before they had gotten home, so the house was empty besides them. Hopefully they don't destroy it. Scáthach and Aífe had lined up against each other, both prepared to have a 'spar' against one another.

That wasn't the problem he was worried about though. What worried him was that they were having a traditional spar, where the two combatants wore nothing but war paint. Although for some reason, Scáthach and Aífe were wearing body suits, and he was wearing the war paint. This wasn't the first time this had happened, so he only felt some shame. Naruto just wanted to know why he was involved. At the same time, he was worried that asking would further involve himself.

Scáthach briefly eyed him, slightly annoyed. **"SIGH **Is it really that unpleasant to be wearing the traditional training clothes?"

"That's not the point!" Naruto all but yelled. "I'm the one person not training, yet I'm the only person in war paint!"

Scáthach's blank face turned towards him, and a smirk overcame her lips. "Why not? Are you going to do something about it?"

"I mean...it really doesn't matter that much..."

"Then be brave. My sister seems to like it, and I would be lying if I said I felt otherwise." Like wasn't a strong enough word. Aífe was practically drooling. "Besides," Scáthach continued. "As your Shishou, I have a right to your body. There's no need to hide yourself from me. I will take responsibility for your—"

Naruto looked nervous. "Let's not talk about this with Aífe around-"

"**How vulgar, but please, continue. It's your life.**" Aífe stopped drooling.

"Vulgar? I'm not sure how this is vulgar, but your interrupting," Scáthach said.

"**GRRRRRR**"

Scáthach looked amused. "Oh? Are you threatening me?"

The ground under Aífe cracked. "**Die, bitch.**"

Aífe rushed her, spear thrusting at paces no regular would ever hope of achieving, appearing as just a blur to the untrained eye. Scáthach dodged it like child's play, her body language denoting that she wasn't taking this very seriously, even though Aífe was around her same skill level. Scáthach was completely relaxed despite the wild swings of a spear around herself, and slightly amused. Aífe's anger may have increased her strength exponentially, but Aífe was sloppy and easy to dodge.

Scáthach raised an eyebrow as Aífe missed her again. "Am I going to have to teach you to? How sloppy."

"I'll show you sloppy!" Aífe growled.

Aífe was becoming more refined, her techniques better polished. She was reigning in her anger. The two of them were even now, spears locked in combat as they each searched for unseen openings.

"Hey! Can you two please stop fighting! I want to show you something!" Naruto tried and failed to get them to stop.

They exchanged blows, matched evenly in their skill with a spear. Scáthach had more experience, though, and was slowly figuring out Aífe's weaknesses as the fight went on. Scáthach slid to the side to avoid a thrust and swung her spear in a slashing motion, which Aífe ducked under.

Aífe jumped back, spear held out protectively.

Scáthach's spear glinted with bloodlust as a slight red aura appeared around it. It crackled in expectancy, and the spear almost leaped from her hand towards Aífe. In a weaker person's hands, the spear would have overwhelmed their senses, and it was only a regular spear. God knows what would happen if Scáthach got her hands on a demonic or cursed spear, or god forbid both. They were about to go in for a second, more intense round, but Naruto had seen enough. They were barely trying now, and he would rather not get the house destroyed.

"You know, I was saving this for later, but I suppose now is a good a time as any." He sighed and momentarily hung his head, before gathering mana into his fingertips. His index finger touched his forearm. "This is a new technique, so bear with me if it doesn't work out."

Scáthach and Aífe glanced towards him, interested.

He drew the rune Uruz on his forearm, meaning "Manifestation" and pressed it into his skin.

"Uruz!" He voiced, and smoke appeared.

Scáthach and Aífe's eyes widened.

There were 10 Naruto's now.

"Dammit, I overcharged it with mana again! I only wanted three of them..." Naruto crossed his arms. "You know what, this works too."

The 9 other Naruto's jumped into action and apprehended the stunned women, who they then brought back to the original. Despite being stunned, Scáthach managed to ask one simple question.

"How?"

"It's simple, really." Naruto began his lecture. "Uruz can be used as manifestation to manifest something that one might need. By inscribing Uruz on myself, I am asking it to manifest myself, creating the clones that you see here. The amount of mana put in can affect the number and quality of clones produces." He paused. "I was trying to make 3 somewhat strong clones," He flicked the clone nearest to him, and it popped in a cloud of smoke. "but I ended up increasing the amount," He said.

Scáthach was speechless. She may not be a rune master, but she sure as hell knew about runes. Uruz is supposed to be a somewhat useless rune, only valuable in manifesting different items that one has touched or knows how to create. If Naruto knows how to make clones, then either he has done it before a different way, or...he knows the physics of it. He knows how to formulate and shape the mana correctly as well as how to evenly distribute among the clones. That's _not _how Uruz is usually used. Frankly, Naruto was a genius.

Scáthach only knew how to use the runes the regular way, and that was enough for her.

While Scáthach was engrossed in her thoughts about him, Aífe had some...different thoughts.

Blood spewed from her nose.

Aífe's mind is a minefield. Best stay out of her head.

* * *

After that training session, Aífe had locked herself in her room, blushing furiously. She wouldn't be out for a while. Scáthach had checked in on her just see her passed out on her bed muttering words so dirty a whore wouldn't be caught dead saying them.

Scáthach grabbed Naruto's wrist. "Come with me."

"What—Scáthach, you don't have to drag me! Wait—are we going to your room!?" He shouted while lightly flailing.

The door opened and was shut.

*CLICK*

Locked.

"Did you need something Scáthach?" Naruto questioned.

Scáthach had tossed him onto her bed, and Naruto was currently resting with his back to the wall, sitting up. He had changed out of the war paint into something more respectable, some pants and a shirt.

Honestly, Scáthach had been waiting to do this for a _long_ time. 2 years, to be precise.

Her heart thumped to a beat faster than usual, and her body grew slightly hot looking at him. Her body suit didn't help, urging her heat to create sweat to fall from her skin. Scáthach controlled her body, which took some serious mental control, and starting walking towards him, her breaths deep and husky, brimming with desire.

Naruto sputtered. "Ugh...Scáthach?..."

Scáthach climbed up onto the bed, her knew meeting the comfortable mattress first, and then her hands followed suit until her entire body was on her bed, crawling towards Naruto. Her hands created an alleyway for his body, and her legs slowly dragged on the sheets. Her knees rested next to his hips, one of her hands on his shoulder and the other running through his hair as she straddled him, her soft, plump buttocks on top of his tent, which had been showing signs of forming when she and Aífe sparred. He had to use a lot of willpower to keep it down. Scáthach's face may have had a blank expression on it, but her ruby red eyes shown lustfully with love.

"Hmph. I said I would take responsibility for you, and I wasn't lying. It was never a game I wanted. Lovers is a much more appropriate statement," Scáthach said.

"Then the teasing..." Naruto stated.

"Was just for my own amusement. Seeing you blush was cute, and just made me want you even more. It's hard suppressing your desire. I want you, so I'll take you. _You're mine._" Scáthach said.

She kissed him, her lips moving in a fervor against his. She tasted sweet, like cherries, and Naruto couldn't get enough of it. Scáthach seemed to agree, as they kissed even harder than before, their tongues seeking to come out and clash with each other. They did just that, as they both opened their mouths into the kiss and allowed their tongues to clash lustfully.

'_...T-t-tongue...' _Naruto thought, mind-blown at the kiss.

Scáthach's lips trailed downwards as she kissed his bottom lip and bit at it, causing him to quietly groan in pleasure. Her kisses trailed over his cheek and towards his ear, where she stopped, and lightly bit his ear.

"Hmph. I've decided," Scáthach said nonchalantly.

"What—decided what?" Naruto questioned.

"After seeing you get this "erection" while training I've come to the decision that it is entirely unbeneficial to combat," A light blush dusted her face as she lectured him. "I feel your eyes staring through me when you get it."

"B-b-but I tried so hard to hide it as you trained me..." Naruto said.

"...No, you were obvious." Scáthach said.

"Uhh...I'm sorry..." Naruto mumbled.

"Sheesh. As it goes right now, it takes most of your willpower to suppress your erection. This might be too much stimulus for a virgin like you." Scáthach said.

"But you're a virgin too!" Naruto complained

Ignoring him, Scáthach's eyes glanced down and noticed the tent he was pitching. "It seems that you have one right now. The only logical assumption that can be made is that I'm the cause of this. **SIGH**, I guess I must take responsibility," Scáthach said.

Naruto covered his furiously blushing face in his hands.

"And that's why, allow me to relieve you of your virginity." Scáthach requested, her red eyes looking at him lustfully.

"What!?"

"Hmm? If you've had the taste of a woman before, you shouldn't get distracted by the mere sight of one during battle. Plus, I have a certain itch that needs to be taken care of, Na-ru-to~" Scáthach said.

"So, how about it?"

* * *

Nighttime.

Morrígan was a big fan of the darkness. It shielded her from mortal view when she decided to visit the mortal realm, which allowed her to do many things that she would be unable to do in the daytime, as people would see her. One such thing was turning into her own sacred animal, a raven.

**[WHOOSH]**

Morrígan, now currently in raven form, flew over Ireland, her impressive 10-foot wingspan being shadowed from mortal eyes by the cover of darkness. Had one looked closely, they would have seen the three eyes of the raven, befitting of the Trinity Goddess that Morrígan was.

Currently, she was flying over a forest between two towns in Ireland, where she had been searching for Árd-Greimne's household. The man had moved around a lot before settling down, so Morrígan had to search every town that she came across. Luckily, when she was near this town, she had briefly sensed a use of rune magic, which may not have meant Árd-Greimne, but it was her only lead.

She perched on top of one of the houses, her godly senses reaching out to find the magic she had sensed a few hours ago.

'_It seems to be over on the eastern side of town...'_

She spread her wings, a magnificent black color that shined in the moonlight, and took off towards the eastern side of town, her three swamp green eyes searching for traces of magic. Thankfully, she didn't have to do a thorough search and cross-check different magic signatures from the one she sensed, since only 3 people had any traces of magic, but there was probably one more that wasn't currently present. They were in one house.

One, singular house.

That was it. One house had traces of magic. If they weren't in this house, then she was in the wrong town. Morrígan perched herself on top of the house, which she realized was actually very big, and folded her wings inwards as she landed. Her top eye, the third one, glowed with her godly power as she thoroughly searched the house. She stopped at one room, and the raven did it's best to smirk.

'_I found you, Scáthach.'_

Her eyes glowed with power as she looked through the house and into the one room—

Morrígan-Raven blushed. _'...I think I'll wait till morning...'_

* * *

**Lightless King: You're absolutely right. Honestly, the main reason I use the name is for its familiarity, it just makes it easier for me to write for some reason. I would also like to say that people who read fanfics, in general, have to have an open mind and get rid of most preconceptions before reading any fanfic. Authors all have different opinions on things and can take similar ideas in a very different direction. Also, I've read many a story that uses the name Naruto but doesn't have any connection to the real thing, so this isn't that original. I would also like to thank you. Your comment actually helped me set up the first major antagonist and his reasoning.**

**I hope that this wasn't all that bad, even though it is just plot development. I'm pretty sure that the next chapter will have some action, and if not than chapter 4 will 100% have action. Either way, so long as it's interesting I hope that whoever decided to read this enjoyed it.**

**If I'm correct then it's been about a month since a last updated... but that's just how I write. It will take me at least a month to write a chapter, if not more so please bear with me and be patient, which you guys have been, so keep it up. Anyways, I hope you have enjoyed the story so far even though there hasn't been any action at all, but I'm hoping to fix that.**

**If you have any suggestions, write a review or something. I can't promise that I'll do it, as I already have a basic plan, but I'll give it some consideration.**

**And don't be that asshole that flames. Not just in this story, but in any story. Don't use anonymity as an excuse to flame someone. If you don't like the way they write or how they portrayed a character, there are nice ways to say that. Constructive criticism is welcome, but if you don't anything nice to say, just don't review on that story. If you didn't like how an author portrayed a character, then perhaps say something like, "I didn't really see BLANK acting like that, I always thought that they acted more serious," instead of saying that the author sucks and can't write.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed.**


	3. Shadow

**IMPORTANT UPDATE: STORY WILL BE REWRITTEN**

**While I will technically be abandoning this story, the rewritten one will have the same BASIC plotline, just starting at a different point. If you want a reason for this, it's because this story strains my mind. The majority of the plotline actually came from me, not a mythos. Truth is, there is simply little to no information on Scáthach, so I've been panicking and coming up with random things and hoping that it all comes together. The rewritten story will start with Cú Chulainn since he has a story that I can base my plot off of. It also helps that I won't have to show too much character development for Scáthach or Aífe since they would have been alive for at least a couple hundred years. I will be using things that appear (or would appear) in this story, just either in flashbacks or brief mentions/explanations. Please bear with me. I hope this news doesn't upset anyone. If it does, I'd like to apologize.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Lethra had returned home to an interesting sight.

Scáthach and Naruto were nowhere to be found. Granted, she had only looked until she saw Aífe, but that was still a little odd.

Aífe, on the other hand, looked completely out of sorts. She had a snarl carved into her face and her hands were twitching and covered in dried up blood. Had there not been a damp white cloth stuck up her nose, Lethra might have thought her daughter murdered someone.

"Aífe? Are you alright?" Lethra asked her daughter.

"Just fucking dandy. My nose spurts blood for twenty minutes straight and refuses to stop. On top of that, I can't seem to find Scáthach or Naruto. It's like they disappeared!" Aífe complained, her arms going ramrod straight at her sides.

That was odd. The two of them weren't known to vanish randomly. They usually could be found wandering the house or in their rooms working on something.

"Did you check their rooms?" Lethra questioned.

Aífe paused. "Well... no. But I checked everywhere else!"

**[SIGH]**

That was just like Aífe to forget to check their rooms. Even when angered or annoyed, Aífe still had the decency to keep personal rooms private. But if she wanted to find them, they would have to breach that privacy.

"Alright, Aífe. I'll go check Scáthach's room, you can go check Naruto's. Meet back here in around ten minutes, ok?"

"Right."

Aífe slowly jogged away in the direction of Naruto's room, her tense body starting to relax, while Lethra walked towards Scáthach's room, a headache starting to form. It was late at night when she had returned home, so the sky was dark and Lethra needed a candle to light her way. Árd-Greimne was currently out on important business and would be back the next morning.

Lethra walked through the kitchen and down the hall towards Scáthach's room. Upon arrival, she quietly placed her candle down on the ground next to the door, careful not to catch anything aflame. Her hand rested upon the door handle.

"So, how about it?"

**[!]**

Lethra froze, and her eyes widened.

That was Scáthach's voice. Considering that Scáthach had asked a question, there was only one conclusion. Scáthach wasn't alone in the room. Lethra's hand dropped from the door handle and she stepped back, eyes wide.

'_Is Naruto with her? Are they... doing it?'_

She could no longer hear their voices, the door muffled them too much. Lethra slowly stepped forward, and their voices got louder.

**[STEP]**

They were still muffled, but it was getting clearer the closer she got. She believed it was Naruto speaking right now...

**[STEP]**

Yes, it was Naruto. Lethra could distinguish his voice. However, she was still unable to hear exactly what the two were saying, she was still too far away. One more...

**[STEP]**

Despite the voices now had better quality, Lethra still was unable to make out exactly the words that were being said. Naruto had stopped speaking. Any second now, Scáthach would start. Lethra kneeled and pressed her ear against the door gently.

**[PUSH]**

Too hard! She almost gave herself away! Lethra eased up on the pressure and sat back a little. Scáthach had already started speaking! Lethra pressed her ear against the door to try and hear best what was being said. Lethra paid close attention and was just barely able to make out her daughter's words.

"... It wouldn't be right for me to continue to treat you as a child. I may have trained you, but you are my peer. Now, and to my best prediction, till forever. I will, therefore, treat you as my equal, as you are deserving. And it would be weird to have a romantic relationship with someone you treat as a child. I must have gotten carried away, so I'll extend my apologies. However, this should change nothing between us. It is only right that we are friends and peers..."

Lethra almost squealed in delight she could barely contain her excitement. From the sound of it, Naruto and Scáthach had started pursuing a relationship, and that meant one important thing.

'_Grandchildren!'_

Lethra refocused in on the conversation. Hopefully, she hadn't missed anything important...

"... While I respect your decision, I can't help but feel disappointed that despite that it will help prevent you from getting distracted, you don't want to engage in sex. However, I do not know your reasoning..."

That was Scáthach! So Naruto didn't want to have sex... disappointing and slightly confusing, but easily surmountable. All that Scáthach had to do was wait and let his lust fester inside of him. Keep yourself in his mind and problem solved. Any stupid reason he could come up with to say no will dissolve in his head as his lust took hold.

Lethra giggled to herself. '_How sly, daughter. Using battle as an excuse to expose him to the pleasures of sex... just as I taught you. Keep your pride and dignity just until you've tied the knot, and then you can fuck him all you want. But what I may have neglected to mention, is that you'll be the one exposed to extreme pleasure, daughter. It'd be interesting to see you the morning after...'_

Lethra quietly left.

* * *

**The Next Morning**

Árd-Greimne had returned home early in the morning, around two and went immediately to bed. It had been a long and tiring town meeting where they had (Surprise!) gotten nothing done. He hadn't woken up until around eight, well after sunrise. He wasn't the last one up, though.

"Have you seen either Scáthach or Naruto, dear?" Lethra asked.

Having just woken up minutes earlier, Árd-Greimne wasn't fully part of the living world yet.

"Uhhhh...huuuun...heh?" Was his eloquent and well thought out response.

"I'll take that as a no," Lethra said. "Well, Aífe decided to go searching for Naruto, she should be back soon hopefully."

"Hello, mother."

**[!]**

"Scáthach! When did you wake up? I thought you were still in bed!" Lethra said to her daughter.

"There is no need to worry, Mother. I had accidentally slept in too late, and was just getting ready in my room," Scáthach explained.

A small, mischievous side of Lethra slid into her mind. With Árd-Greimne all but dead to the world, he wouldn't remember anything for the next twenty minutes, when he finally fully wakes up.

"Oh? Did you perhaps stay up late? With a certain someone...?" Lethra teased.

Scáthach showed no surprise and merely gave her mother a small smile. "You would be correct, Mother. Naruto and I talked in my room for a little bit, but I suppose you already knew that, didn't you?"

**[!]**

'_She knew!?'_

Scáthach merely sat at the table and began eating her breakfast with her Father, who was completely oblivious to the conversation at hand. Lethra was in partial shock. When she had been peeking in on the two of them, she was sure that they didn't notice her presence. Then again, Naruto's runes could do practically anything.

"Mother! I found Naruto!"

Aífe came running into the room with him, a smile on her face. Naruto looked like he barely had any time to clean himself up. His hair was wild and messy and, like Árd-Greimne, had a certain deadness in his eyes. But unlike Árd-Greimne, Naruto was completely conscious of the activity going on around him.

**[YAWN]**

"Hey..."

Lethra quietly giggled to herself. He was still pretty out of sorts, and it was pretty funny too see. Naruto sat down next to Scáthach and subconsciously pushed his chair closer to hers. Scáthach hid her smile at that, and Aífe had a hard time suppressing her glare.

Lethra decided to start up some scintillating conversation. "How'd everyone sleep last night?"

"I slept fine, Mother. Just a usual night's sleep," Aífe said.

"That's good," Lethra said. "How about you, Naruto?"

"Oh, uhh... I slept fine too," Replied Naruto.

Scáthach clicked her tongue and lightly scoffed, her lips twitching upwards.

"_We _had a great night's sleep mother," Scáthach said as she looped her arm into Naruto's and pressed said arm right between her breasts proactively. She detached from him after a few seconds and sent him a small, but no less victorious smirk.

Aífe slammed her hands against the table.

Scáthach's face became slightly impassive as her ruby orbs turned towards her sister in fake curiosity. Her hand went to Naruto's and slightly grasped it.

"I just remembered: You two forgot to get the training equipment I asked for. Now let's go and get the equipment—"

Scáthach had already started dragging him out of the house, their hands locked together.

Scáthach hummed softly. "If you really want it that much, then the two of us will get it for you, Aífe."

Aífe stood there, slack-jawed as the two of them left the building.

"But I was supposed to go too..."

**[SNORE]**

Árd-Greimne was asleep.

* * *

**Outside, In Town**

A little while after leaving home, Naruto and Scáthach split up to perform different áthach was going to get the training equipment that Aífe asked for, and Naruto... well, he was going to do whatever he wanted.

Naturally, Naruto went to a bar.

This wasn't because this was Ireland, but because the Irish always seemed to congregate at bars. Whether it be at night to get drunk and have fun, or in the middle of the day to simply meet up with friends. The owners didn't really mind that much, business was business after all.

Entering the bar, Naruto wasn't surprised to see it bustling with people. There were multiple groups sitting at tables simply chatting among themselves, and there was one large group where the people were being extremely loud as they sang random songs that they probably made up on the spot.

Walking up to the bar, Naruto simply sat down as a server approached him.

"Can I get you something?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, just one cider please."

The server nodded his consent and went off to go get Naruto's drink. As he sat, Naruto simply took the environment in. It was just a normal day with people singing at the bar and meeting friends. Naruto couldn't help but grin as he saw an extremely drunk man fall from on top of a table.

"Hey, you mind if I sit here?"

Naruto turned his head slightly to see a man. He was obviously a foreigner, as not only has Naruto never seen him before but he has also never seen his complexion. The man had hair like darkness, and it seemed to suck in light. His skin was so pale that Naruto was worried that simply stepping out into the sun would burn the man. And his eyes were pitch black, a color Naruto had never seen or heard of before. He gave off an otherworldly aura, one that Naruto couldn't help but be slightly suspicious of.

"I don't mind. Have a seat," Naruto said.

The man did so, but Naruto felt that he would have sat down no matter what his answer would have been.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Káto Kósmos. And you are?"

"Naruto."

The two of them sat in silence for a moment, the only sound being the background noises of the bar.

"You're not from here, are you, Káto?"

Káto nodded in consent. "That would be correct. I assume my name gave myself away, didn't it?"

Naruto said nothing, and the man continued.

"Then again, your name isn't exactly domestic to this land, is it?"

Naruto shrugged. "My mother named me on her deathbed, so I'm told. I may not have chosen it myself, but a name is a name."

"I suppose..."

The server came back with Naruto's drink and took Káto's own order. Naruto took a small sip as Káto talked to the server.

'_It's good.'_

"Naruto, do you have any siblings? I myself have five. Two brothers and three sisters to be precise."

Naruto thought for a moment, "I was adopted around the age of ten, so while I would say I have two adopted sisters, we're more like very close friends and comrades."

"That's nice."

The server came back with Káto's drink, and he took a sip before looking back towards Naruto.

"My youngest brother can be a real prick. He views himself as self-entitled, and he can't stay faithful to his wife, who needs to grow some balls and leave him. I can't see the bastard changing his ways."

Naruto raised an eyebrow curiously. "You speak as if you hate your brother."

Káto turned to him, his eyes smoldering with black fire.

"I do."

Naruto took note of the unbridled hatred. Something so pure and hateful was not natural in humans. Deciding that the conversation had taken a turn towards its end, Naruto stood up, his cider finished in front of him. Alcohol never gave him the buzz people claimed it gave them, so downing multiple beverages had little effect on Naruto. Still, he only drank it in small amounts, as he didn't particularly like the aftertaste.

"Before you go, Naruto."

Naruto turned back towards Káto.

"_Beware of the sun."_

**[!]**

Naruto almost laughed the warning off. Had it not been for the man's serious tone of voice, or the blaze that had engulfed Káto's eyes, Naruto would have written him off as a crazy man. But Naruto could tell Káto's warning had at least some legitimacy if just a little.

Káto turned back to him, a dark, yet amused smile on his face.

"And if you meet a man named Zelretch, you'll want to be sure to stab him. Trust me, he'll be causing a lot of problems in the future."

**With Scáthach**

Morrígan could now finally fulfill her task.

In crow form, Morrígan had watched as the two, Scáthach and Naruto, split from each other and went their own separate ways. Scáthach seemed to have whispered something into the man's (Naruto's) ear before turning around and walking away with a small smile on her face. While the man hid his own facial expression well, Morrígan could tell he was refraining from doing something.

'_It probably has to do with last night and their kissing. He's becoming more sexually confident around her, and more confident in general. Once they actually do the deed, he'll open up more sexually, and in turn, expose more of his true self. Although I can't imagine his true self being all too different from himself now. He'll probably be more open and confident, as well as less shy around people in general.'_

But Naruto wasn't Morrígan's main target, Scáthach was. Morrígan's attention went back towards the female warrior as she flew ahead of her and landed in a back alleyway, alone, and transformed into her human form.

'_I still can't believe I got all flustered just seeing them kiss. It has been a while though...'_

Lost in thought, Morrígan almost bumped into Scáthach but stopped herself before she could. Morrígan simply stared apathetically towards Scáthach, who stared back, unwaveringly.

**[COUGH]**

A random person's cough snapped Morrígan out of her trance.

"Hello. It is nice to meet you. What might be your name?"

Morrígan decided to try the polite route. She could technically force Scáthach to obey, but willing participants were always better than unwilling ones.

The crimson-haired woman stared before answering.

"Scáhach," She said rather softly.

Of course, Morrígan already knew this, as she may or may not have stalked Árd-Greimne for a small period of his life. Under Dagda's orders of course. Morrígan had to blame it on Dagda.

Morrígan nodded towards Scáthach before introducing herself.

"Morrígan."

"I don't suppose I have the pleasure of meeting a goddess, do I?"

**[…]**

Morrígan probably should have come up with a fake name. Anyone native to this area would know of her, and most people were too afraid to try and either make fun of her or play as her.

Scáthach took Morrígan's silence as her response.

"What can I do for the Morrígan?"

Deciding not to beat around the bush, Morrígan got straight to the point.

"I need you to take over the Land of Shadows."

**[?]**

Confusion. That was it. Scáthach's face only showed confusion. She didn't care about a goddess talking to her or requesting something, only that Scáthach knew that the Land of Shadows did not need to be governed.

Frankly, that intimidated Morrígan.

She wasn't about to let that show on her face, but Morrígan wasn't completely sure that Scáthach was the best choice. Perhaps there was a less... volatile option. One that Morrígan could control into furthering her own agenda.

Before Morrígan could speak, Scáthach already had her answer. While seeing the small changes on Morrígan's face slightly affect Scáthach decision, it was nowhere near enough to change the final outcome.

"I don't see why not."

* * *

**Around 10 Hours later**

**Home**

"Are you sure about this Scáthach?" Lethra asked, a myriad of emotions swirling inside of her brain and her heart. Happy that her daughter was growing up and becoming a woman, sad that she was going to leave. Proud that she could take care of herself, distraught at the feeling of no longer being needed. Lethra both wanted and did not want what Scáthach was proposing yet had no way of vocalizing her feelings.

Scáthach, Aífe, and Lethra were currently in a sitting room. The walls were a dull light blue color as if clouds were covering it, and the seats were lavished in a bright purple, which symbolized their stance as high-class members of society. Árd-Greimne said that he had to go to the bathroom, so he was currently out of the room.

"Yes, I am."

Aífe stormed up to her. "Well, you're not going without me!"

Aífe wasn't going to simply let Scáthach 'run away' with Naruto. She wasn't about to give up, no matter how grim her chances seemed. If there was one thing Aífe refused to do, it was giving up. Besides, she could always seduce him later...

"Aífe..." Lethra pleaded.

Aífe shook her head. "No, mother. I'm not going to let Scáthach simply leave and never be seen again. She can be a pain sometimes, but she's my sister, and I wouldn't be able to bear not seeing her again. Besides, I'll make sure that she visits you and Father every so often."

Lethra, while sad that both of her daughters were leaving her, couldn't help but feel happy and proud. They were old enough to make their own decisions, and they didn't need her or Árd-Greimne babying them every step of the way. They were warriors, they didn't need her to be next to them all the time.

"I agree."

"Husband..." Lethra whispered.

Árd-Greimne had entered the room not long ago and had been there long enough to hear most of the conversation. Only now had he deemed it right to speak.

"Scáthach and Aífe are old enough to make their own decisions. And even if they don't end up visiting us, we will always be in their hearts, and them in our hearts," He said.

Aífe nodded. "Spoken perfectly, father. Well, we've got a big day tomorrow, so I'm going to go to bed."

Before Aífe could move, she was engulfed in a hug.

Aífe smiled. "I love you too, Mother."

"I'll miss you... both of you," Lethra quietly said.

Scáthach smiled and embraced her mother along with Aífe. "We know. But it's late, and we can continue this tomorrow."

Lethra nodded tearfully, and she and Árd-Greimne went to bed, with Aífe and Scáthach following.

* * *

**The Next Day**

**Shipyard**

The _Raven_.

That was the name of their ship.

Ironically enough, Morrígan had no idea what the ship was called before seeing it. She claimed that it was her job to find the people, not the boat. While Morrígan was genuine in her confusion, she was still a goddess. Naruto, Aífe, and Scáthach couldn't help but wonder if Morrígan was telling the truth.

The _Raven _was a big ship, much bigger than what four people needed in order to sail to Dún-Scaíth, which was in Alba, or Scotland. When they had asked, Morrígan had said that they needed a big ship to fend off the sea monsters that lived in the area.

More specifically, the Coichenn and the Curruid.

Morrígan had explained to them that ships like the _Raven _were originally used to hunt sea monsters, and that sea monsters had learned over the years to avoid that kind of ship and target other ones.

Of course, if a sea monster did target their ship any of the four of them would be able to kill it with ease.

Except for the Coichenn and the Curruid.

Morrígan had hoped that they would only confront one of them and that after seeing that Morrígan was a goddess, they would back off. If they didn't, a fight was inevitable.

Relentless waves crashed upon the side of the boat, periodically swarming onto the deck, and then washing back off. The _Raven _rocked as the sea churned around it, the four passengers simply standing on the deck, unamused and uninterested. But while Aífe, Naruto, and Scáthach were waiting for anything to happen, Morrígan was preparing herself for the perceived unavoidable confrontation with one of the two legendary sea monsters.

Clouds gathered overhead; they were sailing straight into a storm. Where there is a storm, there are sea monsters. Morrígan had debated going around the storm, but she couldn't see a way around that wouldn't take days or weeks to complete. What worried Morrígan was the size of the storm. Bigger storms meant bigger sea monsters, and Morrígan did not want to deal with the necessary paperwork that was given when a god or goddess slew something important in the human realm.

Lightning flashed overhead as the torrential downpour rained from the heavens above. As if sensing Morrígan's mood, the other three prepared themselves for the inevitable confrontation, grabbing weapons and positioning themselves around the ship, waiting.

The sea lurched, and from it, a monster jumped free. It was as if they had traveled back to the prehistoric age; the sea monster greatly resembled some of the dinosaurs of old.

Its head swung towards Naruto, the spears it called teeth opening in anticipation of its new meal. Naruto simply stared and raised his hand, his mana gathering in preparation.

"Isa."

Winter itself gathered on the palm of his hand and spread towards the beast. Its movements became sluggish, and ice spread across its scales and into its body, freezing from inside out and from outside in. The monster had turned into a statue of ice. A spear stabbed through its neck, but the beast was already dead.

"Thanks for the help, Aífe."

Aífe nodded and went to get another spear. A hand rested on Naruto's shoulder. Scáthach was next to him and had been for a little while now, clearly prepared to kill the monster had Naruto chosen to do nothing.

"Thanks for the backup Scáthach," Naruto said.

Scáthach nodded. "I had faith in you, but one can never be too cautious, especially in the unknown."

"Well it's nice to know that you guys have my back," He said.

"Don't get used to it," Scáthach said.

"Don't worry. I won't."

The two of them stood there for a little while, simply staring out into the open water.

"You shouldn't have teased your mother earlier today, Scáthach," Naruto said. Scáthach didn't deign to give him a response, eyes looking out into the storm.

"I mean, I know why you did that last night—"

Scáthach interrupted him. "Do you really?" _'If his answer isn't something on the lines of "because I want you" then it's incorrect.'_

Naruto nodded. He had come to the conclusion while it was happening and didn't particularly blame Scáthach for her actions. In fact, he probably would have done it if he was in Scáthach's position, but he wouldn't have been able to make his words as convincing.

"Then why did I do it? If you already know my reasoning, then this shouldn't be that hard of a question, will it?" Naruto slowly nodded.

"You did it to get Árd-Greimne off your back."

Scáthach was silent.

Her eyes narrowed. _'How did he come to that conclusion? All I remember is recognizing him as a peer and his unfortunate "no" to my request...speaking of which, I intend to rectify that.'_

Naruto shook his head with a sigh. "I don't hold it against you. Fighting all of those suitors must have been mightily annoying. By tricking your mother into believing that you're in a relationship, she would eventually confront Árd-Greimne about it. I think we both know who would win that battle."

Scáthach continued to stare out at sea, but her mind was raging.

_'How dense can one man be? I have practically spelled out my own desires and yet he gives me an excuse. His excuse. Is he rejecting the notion of the two of us together? Don't think I haven't noticed your gazes. A lady can only take so much before snapping, Naruto. But I think I've somehow gone beyond that point. The next chance I get, I am going to ride you until you loosen up that dense thing you call your head.'_

Outwardly, Scáthach only looked at him. "So you don't know."

"What? But I just told you—"

"You told me your own thoughts, which don't resemble mine own. I don't know what's truly holding you back, but know this. I always get what I want eventually," Scáthach said.

_'I'm not sure why you pull away. I know that you want me just as I want you, I've seen it in your eyes. You have known me for the better part of a decade, and I know that you know that I would never do something like last night unless I truly wanted it. He's acting like he can't accept sex—oh... I understand now. Looking back on it, that makes sense. But now that I know... let's just say kissing isn't enough. You are my man, I intend to make you feel my full love.'_

Naruto, confused, moved to respond to her but was cut off before he could start talking.

"If you two are done, we should probably prepare for a bigger one now," Morrígan said. "We're entering the eye of the storm."

Scáthach sent Morrígan a smirk she knew would annoy the goddess but got little outward reaction. She sighed. Morrígan was no fun.

The boat lurched in the worst of the storm, before entering the calm eye, where the biggest monsters usually lay in wait.

Scáthach looked towards Naruto, who shared the same calm disposition that she herself possessed right now.

Morrígan's face hardened. "Prepare yourselves. Any minute now one of the legendary monsters will inevitably collide with us. Hopefully, they will leave us alone. But we must be prepared to fight."

The three of them nodded, and they stood at their positions on the ship and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

The eye of the storm passed, and they were now in the thick of the rain and thunder.

They waited.

And waited.

And waited.

An hour passed. Scáthach looked at Naruto, a slight incredulous expression on her face as if asking when the confrontation would come. The storm noticeably lightened. They could see the end of the cloud line.

They still waited.

And waited.

And waited.

The storm passed, and the land was now barely in their sights. If they had a telescope, they would have been able to see the land in more detail. They could have asked Morrígan to go and scout, but she was a little preoccupied.

'_How...? I knew that they lived in that area! How is it possible that we only encountered one minor sea monster? Where are the Coichenn and the Curruid? Something's not right...'_

"I can't say I'm disappointed that you were wrong, Morrígan," Aífe snarked playfully.

"Whatever. Just get to the damn island already."

* * *

**Dún-Scaíth**

Their ship arrived at the Northern Shore, where they Morrígan promptly teleported the ship away.

"What?! Couldn't you have just teleported us here? Why'd we have to take a damn ship?!" Aífe complained.

"Dún-Scaíth has natural warding runes that only allow for guided teleportation. That is, you can only teleport here if you have a marker nearby," Morrígan explained.

"Why does this matter? We are here now. No use complaining about the past," Scáthach said. "Let's enter the fortress."

The Fortress of Shadows certainly lived up to its name.

With walls as black as obsidian, the fortress lay on a cliff overlooking the Northern and Western Shores. Like any classical fortress, It had four towers at its corners and a main building in the middle.

Morrígan nodded to the three of them. "Follow me."

They did so, and Morrígan led them inside of the looming fortress. Deciding that they could explore the keep later, Morrígan took them directly into the center building. They went down multiple spiraling staircases, coming into an underground part of the castle. Morrígan led them into an empty room, with only one door leading in, and that same door leading out.

Morrígan gestured towards the wall in front of them.

"The whole reason this fortress even exists is to protect this wall. For this wall holds the only portal into the Land of Shadows, which is only accessible without this portal to its ruling family."

Scáthach spoke. "And you want me to take over this place?"

Morrígan nodded.

"How do I start?"

"Simply walk into the wall," Morrígan said.

Scáthach did so, and walked towards the wall, and right through it. She was gone. Naruto followed, then Aífe, and Morrígan took up the rear. Upon exiting, Morrígan spoke.

"Welcome to the land of Shadows."

"Boo. This place sucks."

"Aífe, you should be more polite," Scáthach scolded.

"But it does! I mean, everything's so... dead."

As Aífe said, everything was dead. The Land of Shadows did not look like an extraterrestrial place, no, it looked like a winter nightmare with no snow. Trees hand no leaves and were bare of all bark. No grass grew on the ground. It was forever nighttime, and a crescent moon shone overhead. It was a scene from a horror movie.

"We should make haste towards the castle. I would rather not be caught up by a bunch of hungry wraiths. They are not particularly kind to their guests," Morrígan said.

The castle was not obsidian black, no, it was pitch black. It was as if a castle shaped hole had been ripped out of reality, a piece of the space-time continuum gone missing. It was an extravagant castle, with around ten floors at its highest, and must have had at least three underground floors.

"The castle is not far. It would do us good to walk and find the safest entrance," Morrígan said.

They walked towards the castle, watching their every step and the environment around them. In the unknown, anything was possible, and Morrígan's three companions would rather not die. The castle soon became larger and took up a good portion of the view.

"Naruto," Scáthach said.

Naruto looked towards her, eyes shining in curiosity.

Scáthach looked at him, a small frown marred her face. "Did you truly expect me to buy your lame excuse? I intend to get what I desire, and I know you want it too. There is no need to deny it."

_'Am I truly that easy to read?'_

"Hey! We're getting close to the castle, so pay attention!"

_'Thank you, Aífe. I get to keep my head.'_

"We'll continue this later," Scáthach said. _'You truly have to true reason to refuse. I mean to have you, and I know that you mean to have me. You will not escape me a second time. I'll not be content without you.'_

Approaching the castle was a simple task. Entering was a whole nother demon entirely. The castle was surrounded by multiple swarms of wraiths or souls that felt unhappy with their deaths or want vengeance against someone that they could not achieve in life. Had anyone counted them, they would have numbered in the many hundred thousands, a number that would intimidate any warrior.

Morrígan sighed. "Well, we should probably find a secret entrance or an easy way inside.

Scáthach's spear flashed to her side and she strolled in the castle's direction. Aífe looked at her sister, already guessing her course of action.

"There is no need. I will wet this body of mine in the blood of my victims."

Morrígan looked unsure and sent a quick glance towards Naruto as if attempting to see how he felt about that. Morrígan was slightly surprised to see the same expectant look that Aífe had and a small smile.

_'It's nice to see that some woman can fend for themselves. But this is like suicide. Wraiths are basically ghosts, I can't see how Scáthach wins a fight against thousands...'_

Striding towards the crowd of wraiths, Scáthach brandished her spear. Her companions followed behind at a distance, looking relaxed and confident. But they were tense and ready to come to her aid, even though she knew it would be unneeded. The wraiths started noticing her.

"A human?"

"I haven't seen one in years... it makes my stomach rumble in hunger."

"No! It's mine to eat!"

Scáthach singled out that last wraith and her body relaxed, anticipating the upcoming boredom. The wraith lunged at her, fully intent on devouring her.

With a swing of her spear, its essence spilled onto the floor.

Whatever life that wraith may have had disappeared.

The crowd erupted.

**End Chapter 3**

* * *

**That's chapter 3, I hope you enjoyed or at least found it readable.**

**Guest—Rest assured, I will cut Aífe some slack. I'll leave it at that.**

**Guest—You're making a very big assumption by assuming that this is simply an OC named Naruto. You read two chapters - barely enough to get the plot going - and have already made an assumption. Perhaps it is an OC, perhaps not. You don't know, and I'll leave it at that.**

**Guest (another guest who had a review I could answer. I'm starting to feel a trend...)—Thank for that criticism. If you have any suggestions for how I could improve character interactions, go ahead and fire them off. I'm always willing to improve my work.**

**LMaltez (not a guest!)—I actually hadn't thought about that... That's a great idea, and I could totally make it work. However, this was your idea, so if you don't want me to use it then I won't. Regardless, you opened my mind to new possibilities.**


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